Trump Aide Faces Scrutiny Over $100K in Kalshi Speech Bets: ABC

US President Donald Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator is in talks with federal regulators to settle allegations that he used nonpublic information to profit from bets on Kalshi markets tied to the president’s speeches, ABC News reported Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

According to the report, Gabriel Perez, a technical assistant who has operated Trump’s teleprompter since 2016, allegedly placed bets on more than a dozen markets tied to Trump’s speeches, generating more than $100,000 in profits.

Kalshi detected the activity through its surveillance systems and referred the trades to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the outlet said. The contracts were part of the platform’s “Mentions” markets, which allow users to bet on whether particular words, phrases or topics will appear in public speeches.

According to ABC’s sources, Perez sometimes exited positions mid-speech when Trump skipped prepared passages containing words he had wagered would be mentioned. Regulators reportedly uncovered bets tied to more than a dozen speeches over roughly three months, including the State of the Union and remarks at the World Economic Forum.

The White House placed Perez on unpaid administrative leave after the report, according to press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said Trump called the alleged conduct a “disgrace.”

Related: Prediction markets defy crypto downturn with record Q2 volume: CoinGecko

Prediction markets confront insider trading scrutiny

Prediction markets have faced increasing scrutiny over potential insider trading as trading volumes have surged in recent months.

In March, six Polymarket traders earned roughly $1 million after correctly betting the United States would strike Iran before the end of February, prompting questions about possible access to nonpublic information. Bloomberg, citing analytics firm Bubblemaps, reported several wallets placed bets only hours before explosions were first reported in Tehran.

In a seperate incident, wallets earned more than $1.2 million betting on an onchain investigation into DeFi platform Axiom shortly before blockchain investigator ZachXBT published allegations of insider trading involving an employee.

Another trader also made about $400,000 by correctly wagering on the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro shortly before the news became public.

The incidents have prompted greater attention from lawmakers and regulators. Last month, Republican Representative Bryan Steil, who chairs the House subcommittee on digital assets, introduced legislation that would prohibit members of Congress and their immediate families from trading prediction market contracts tied to public policy and political outcomes. 

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